Total oxidation of volatile organic compounds on Au/Ce–Ti–O and Au/Ce–Ti–Zr–O mesoporous catalysts

Cerium–titanium mixed oxides and mesoporous cerium-modified titanium and cerium-modified titanium–zirconium mixed oxides were synthesized in order to obtain active support for gold volatile organic compound (VOC) oxidation catalysts. Ce–Ti mixed oxides were synthesized by sol–gel method. Mesoporous TiO₂ and Ti–Zr mixed oxides were prepared through the surfactant templating technique. Gold was loaded on supports by deposition-precipitation method. The catalysts were characterized by thermal analysis, XRD, N₂ analysis, TPR, DR/UV–vis and IR. The results evidenced the beneficial role of ceria modifying additive in decreasing the degree of crystallinity of mesoporous support and its particle size. A high degree of synergistic interaction between ceria and mesoporous oxide was observed. H₂-TPR revealed that the reducibility of the catalysts is greatly enhanced in the presence of gold. Considering the light off temperature, the activity of Au/mesoporous cerium-modified titanium oxide is particularly interesting for VOC oxidation comparatively to the same catalysts with a classical support. The gold particles would be more dispersed and stable. However, the sample Au/mesoporous cerium-modified titanium–zirconium mixed oxide is less interesting for VOC oxidation, particularly for toluene oxidation whose activity depends essentially on the adsorption of toluene molecule.